


The road of falling boulders

by FreeWrite



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin
Genre: ASoIaF Kink Meme, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-26
Updated: 2013-10-26
Packaged: 2017-12-30 12:04:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1018386
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FreeWrite/pseuds/FreeWrite
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Tyrion doesn't intervene when the mountain men attack on the way to the Vale, and Catelyn is abducted.  How does this change things."</p>
            </blockquote>





	The road of falling boulders

**Author's Note:**

> I love Cat, I'm a sucker for a female character like her and despite the darkness of the prompt there was something about it that nagged at me hence the fill.
> 
> OP: This may not be exactly what you were looking for but it's what I came up with.
> 
> Also while there is nothing explicit, mentions of rape along with the results/consequences of.

For near 6 moons now Ned Stark had been scouring the Mountains of the Moon searching for his wife.

Most claimed it was a folly to keep searching for as long as he had, he received regular requests for him to give up the search and return to his children in Winterfell but he ignored them all.

His foster father was dead, as was his King and best friend and Ned Stark would be damned if he left the Vale without either his wife alive and whole or with her bones.

Either way he would keep searching.

The bastard born of incest occupying the Iron Throne could wait. Nothing was more important that the search for his wife, he could only pray that he wasn't too late to save her. 

He still dreams of arriving in time to save Lyanna.

His sleep is now haunted not by images of his sister dying alone and afraid but they have been replaced with his wife. It is this that spurs him to keep searching long after so many have lost hope.

Lyanna's fate shall not be Catelyn's.

At the beginning many had joined his search, scouring the Vale but soon they began to give up, returning to their homes and their lives. Their company had dwindled to a mere 30 men mostly of the North and the Riverlands including Brynden Tully, Jory Cassel and Theon Greyjoy.

And for reason known only to Ned, Tyrion Lannister remained to help with the search.

Ned had been suspicious at first but when he had asked the Imp why he remained with the search parties the answer had been honest and brutal.

"She was hidden and safe until I asked her to cut my bindings. They grabbed her when she leaned out to just that."

The months of searching had allowed Ned to get to know the Imp rather well and while he didn't yet trust Tyrion Ned had grown to respect the younger man. He was honourable in his own way and when he swore that he had nothing to do with the attempt on Bran's life Ned believed him.

Their group was searching the mountains south of Iron Oaks when they found evidence of a camp having recently been abandoned. They followed the fresh trails west until they found another camp that at first glance appeared to be abandoned as well, but the fires were still smoldering, meat was still mounted above them and new furs had been left drying. They waited watching for any sign that there was anyone there. As the sun was beginning it's downward descent and no one stirred from the camp Ned and Brynden stood along with their men and slowly made their way into the camp itself.

That was when they found the first body.

Great bloody gouges and a missing throat. Damage done by no weapon of men.

Whatever had done this had spared no man.

They searched methodically, finding all those who were dead had a weapon in their hand. In a tent huddled a group of frightened children who had just seen whatever had destroyed the camp and kill their families; despite Jory's attempts they were all too frightened to tell them anything of use. Ned's heart went out to them but he was here for one purpose.

"Lord Stark!" The cry came from one of the centre most tents. Turning Ned ran as fast as he could, Brynden not two paces behind him. Ducking inside he held his breath not knowing what to expect and not daring to hope that Catelyn was in there alive.

Once inside the dim tent his gaze was drawn to the centre where sitting upright was the largest direwolf any of them had ever seen. The wolfs eyes took them all in and a low warning growl emitted from it's throat. On a cot behind the wolf lay a person, Ned could not tell whether they lived, as between the darkness of the coming night and the wolf standing guard over them all identifying features were lost to shadow.

Stepping forward Ned studied the wolf before him, the bloodstained muzzle identifying it as the killer of those in the camp but there was something familiar about the yellow gaze staring back at him. Intelligence blazed there and if he had to put name to what else he saw he would have to say fear, relief and mayhap trust. It was then he realised he knew this wolf.

"Nymeria?" He whispered and in a move that surprised all in the tent the wolf wined in distress and moved to the side allowing Ned to approach the cot.

He knew from the moment Nymeria was identified who it was in the cot. He knew that he would find his wife lying there and the wolf had killed those that threatened a member of her pack. He didn't know if he would find her alive and whole. Growing up in the Vale, Ned was well aware of what these mountain tribes stole women for, he had known all along that should he find Catelyn she would not be the woman he last saw Kings Landing.

Kneeling next to the cot he pushed the furs back to reveal his wife’s face. She was pale and had lost weight, there was a yellowing bruise on the right side of her face along with a cut at the hairline, but she was alive.

Reaching out he ran a gentle finger down her face; she didn't stir so he laid a hand on her un-bruised cheek. The heat emanating from her was too much for the cool air in the tent. Pushing back the fur that covered her he saw her hands were bound to each other. With a flick of his dagger the ropes fell away revealing raw and bloody marks but nothing was festering enough to cause the fever he could feel.

"My Lord…" Brynden was now standing by his side, Nymeria watching the man warily. The man pointed to his niece’s feet.

Moving to the end of the cot Ned could not hold back the gasp at the great bloody furrows on the bottom of her feet, by both the sight of the puss oozing and the smell he knew he had found the source of her fever. 

"If they can't walk they can't escape…" Brynden breathed his voice thick with rage.

"Get me something to cleanse these wounds with." Ned ordered the Knight who had found her.

"Where is the closest holdfast?" He looked up at Brynden.

"Iron Oaks is little less than two days from here. Lady Waynwood will welcome us."

The young man returned to the tent and with a nervous glance at Nymeria handed a flagon of clean water to Ned.

As gently as he could he poured water over his wife’s flayed feet to cleans the wounds as best as he can. She doesn't move, shows no sign of waking or being aware of their presence and that worries Ned. He can see the same concern etched Brynden's face. They need to get her to a Maester as quickly as possible.

"If we leave now and don't stop I can have you there this time tomorrow" Brynden offers "There is a mountain pass we can use, I normally wouldn't suggest it but with the Moon Brothers dead thanks to the wolf it should be fairly safe."

Nodding his agreement Ned finished cleaning and binding Catelyn's feet. Moving back up he slid an arm gently under her shoulders and the other under her knees. It was then he noticed the slight swell to her belly; proof of what his wife had endured during her captivity. 4 perhaps 5 moons along, too early to be the result from their time in Kings Landing. From Brynden’s low growl he saw it as well. Wrapping her tightly in the furs he stood holding her frail body close, his earlier thought that she had lost weight confirmed as he cradled her with ease. Leaving the tent he relinquishes his hold on her to Brynden long enough to mount his horse. As gently as he can Ned situates her against his chest his arms solid around her, the heat radiating from her feverish body almost burning him.

Absently he notes that Nymeria has followed them and now stands beside his mount eyeing the men around them warily.

Once she is secure and Brynden has mounted his horse they canter out of the now dead camp with Theon and Jory close at their heels. The rest of the men are left to see to the children Nymeria left alive.

They make good time as they ride through the night and by midday they can see the spires of Iron Oaks rising in the distance.

It is then he notices sweat trickling down Catelyn's face and feels the heat from her body subsiding. Reaching a shaking hand up he lay a hand on her face breathing a sigh of relief to feel it has cooled considerably.

Letting the same hand drop he laid it on the gentle swell of her belly. Ned knew it might be too early to feel the babe move but he let his hand rest there anyway, before news of Jon Arryn's death they had spoken of the possibility of another babe. In their marriage they had never done anything to prevent a babe, both prepared to welcome whomever the Gods saw fit to send them. This babe wasn't from their marriage bed, would be known to all as a bastard, Ned had already raised one in his household and if Cat wanted to keep the babe he wouldn't turn it away. He knows her well enough by now to be sure that she will either love and protect this child as fiercely as she does all their trueborn children or she will turn away from it and refuse to acknowledge the babes existence much as she has done with Jon Snow.

Not out of hatred for the child but the dishonour its existence represents. The pain of how the child came to be overshadowing all else.

He is lost so deep in his memories of another bastard babe and his mother that he jumps in surprise when a low whimper comes from his wife, her body stiffening in fear as consciousness starts to return.

He had hoped she would not wake until they made it to Iron Oaks.

Dropping a gentle kiss to her temple he whispers "You're safe my love. I have you; just sleep…" to his surprise her body relaxes back into his chest as she drops into sleep.

As promised by Brynden the sun is setting as they ride through the gates of Iron Oaks, Lady Anya's oldest and youngest sons standing on ceremony long enough to grasp that the Warden of the North is seeking their protection and help for his lady wife.

Without being told young Wallace runs from the courtyard yelling for the Maester and Morton quickly guides them to the nicest guest rooms of the keep.

Within minutes the Maester is with them and none are surprised when Ned refuses to leave his wife’s side.

Ned has prepared himself as well as he could for what he would see when the Maester and maids stripped his wife of the ruined dress and shift but the sight of scars that shouldn't be there along with half healed cuts and bruises are nearly more than he can handle. There isn't a place on her body that hasn't been touched by violence and the only thing stopping him from running out of the room to retch, scream or take someone’s head is the idea of her waking up without him there.

He is grateful that she sleeps through the most invasive of the Maesters ministrations and only starts to wake after she is dressed in a clean sleeping shift and the man is dressing the rope burns on her wrists.

He knows all the signs of her waking, the way her left leg stretches at the same time she rolls her right shoulder slightly, her face twisting as her body fights for consciousness. He's seen it countless times over the years of their marriage but never has he dreaded her waking up as much as he does now. The Maester finishes with her arm before she wakes fully and Ned moves to sit by her side, taking her hand gently he waits in silence for her eyes to open.

He is rewarded for his patience when a few minutes later her eyes blink open.

Despite the scars, the bruising, the babe in her belly that belongs to another man she has never looked more beautiful to him.

She is there in front of him and alive.

Ned can tell the moment awareness comes as her whole body stiffens.

"You're safe Cat…" he whispers not wanting to startle her.

Cat turns her head as she takes in the sight of her husband sitting beside her, holding her hand so gently in his own.

"This is a dream…" her voice is weak and he can barely make out her resigned words.

"No my love, I am as real as you are."

He watches feeling helpless as her blue eyes fill with tears that quickly spill over onto pale cheeks. 

Ned had never been able to abide by a woman crying let alone his lady wife, without waiting for permission from the Maester he moves to sit on the edge of the bed drawing her close to him.

"I will always find you Cat." He murmurs into top of her head.

The Maester slips out of the door leaving them their privacy; in the dim hallway he is unsurprised to see the Blackfish standing guard. What does startle him is the enormous wolf at the mans feet, though he doesn't comment on Nymeria's presence in the castle.

"She will heal." Is all the man says before leaving for his solar.

Brynden lets his exhausted body sag against the thick stone wall. 

Her body may heal but will her spirit?

Through the closed door he can hear Catelyn’s desperate sobs, Brynden wants to go to her and comfort her as he had so many times when she was a child. He knows it is no longer his place, but that will not stop him from remaining on guard outside her door.

It is close to a moon before the Maester declares Catelyn well enough to travel though he warns that it will be several more before the worst of her wounds are fully healed. 

While her body was slowly healing she had closed herself off to all except Ned. Retreated behind a stone facade that kept the rest of the world out, but when Brynden looked closely he could see her eyes following them, her head tilt as she listened to their conversations and the slight crinkle of her eyes when he told humorous stories from her childhood.

His Cat was still there, merely hurting and scared, unsure of how to deal with this new reality that she is forced to live within. He suspected that given enough time she would begin to come out of her safe shell, he hoped that being around the children would help.

Word comes from Kings Landing that Stannis Baratheon has stormed the capital taking the Iron Throne for himself. Ned sends back that the North supports his claim but he will not be making the journey south in the near future.

When Ned informs Tyrion that his siblings have been arrested and the children disinherited and at the direction of King Stannis, Tyrion himself is to accompany them North and remain there until further instructions are received the Imp is not surprised. 

Tyrion is well aware that he will be held as a high born hostage to ensure his fathers acquiescence and doesn't fight the orders to return to Winterfell.

They make ready to leave, riding for Runestone where a boat will carry them to White Harbor, Brynden choosing to escort them back to Winterfell and see his niece safely home. 

Ned confides in him that Catelyn refuses to acknowledge the babe despite her belly growing with every day that passes. 

He wonders if he is doing the right thing, taking her back to Winterfell, he briefly considers taking her to an empty holdfast in the North until she reaches the end of her mother’s stomach. Not because he is ashamed of her but because he thinks it would be better for her not to have to deal with the rest of the children and all of Winterfell while waiting for the babe to come. When he suggests the idea it is quickly shot down with a quiet "I just want to go home"

They are mere hours from Winterfell, the long ride from White Harbour nearly over. Ned is hesitant for them to get there before nightfall, as he knows Catelyn is not ready to take up the mantle of Lady Stark and be greeted by the entire household. Instead of continuing on he halts their small party and sends Jory ahead to warn Robb, Ser Roderick and Maester Luwin that they will be arriving under the cover of darkness and none are to know until he is able to get Catelyn settled into her chambers.

He will gather the rest of the children in the morning tell them as gently as he can that although their mother is returned to them she is not the same woman she once was. The younger ones won't truly understand why she is so changed but Robb, Sansa and perhaps Arya will grasp the situation much better than Bran and Rickon.

Still now she is unable to walk without pain much less ride with her feet in stirrups for days on end, fortunately his mount is strong and is able to bear the both of them. She is apathetic to all around her, she survives but there is no joy or rage.

This he fears will hurt the children more than if she were angry or sad all the time.

Ned agree's with Brynden's belief that she is hiding to protect herself. Hopefully once they are home in a safe and familiar place the woman he loves will start to show herself again.

It is well past the evening meal and most of the household is abed when they ride through the South Gate. As instructed the courtyard is emptied, only his oldest son and Jory there to greet them. He can feel the exhaustion in her body as much as in his own, she is still so frail and the travel has not been kind to her, he thinks they left Iron Oaks too soon, but had they waited any longer the pregnancy would be too far gone for her to safely travel.

Robb, now 15 chafes at being so close to his parents after so long away but Jory's warnings have held and the young man stands back allowing his father the space he needs to carry his mother into the great keep. The empty halls echo with their footsteps almost mocking Ned with the sounds he desperately wants no one to hear. He is not so naive to think he can hide their return from the household but if he can just have time to get Catelyn settled and safe in her chambers and the children prepared then he can deal with the rest as it comes.

None of them notice the wide grey eyes watching them silently from a cracked bedchamber door.

Her rooms are exactly as they have always been, fresh linens on the bed and a fire roaring in the hearth. 

He helps her out of the traveling dress and into a thick sleeping shift, making sure she is sleeping soundly before leaving to speak with Robb and Maester Luwin.

His footsteps haven't even faded from the empty hall before the door to the girls chambers creaks open and Arya slips silently out of her own room and into her mothers. 

For once the girl is hesitant as she creeps to the bed, but seeing her mother there the girl can't stop herself from slipping beneath the covers and snuggling up to Catelyn who automatically rolls over and pulls her daughter close.

When Ned returns an hour later he is surprised not only by Arya's presence but that Cat is still sleeping peacefully. In the two moons since he had found her not a night had gone by where her sleep had not been plagued by terrors. Slipping into the other side of the bed so Cat was between them he hopes that the night finishes just as peacefully.

As the sun is starting to peek over the horizon he takes his sleeping daughter back to her own chambers, there is much she needs to hear from him before speaking with her mother.

When the household wakes that morning all are shocked to find Lord Stark breaking his fast in the great hall with the children, while word that he and Lady Stark were returning had come some weeks before none had expected them to appear so suddenly or so quietly.

Lady Stark does not appear, none of them realise that it will be weeks before she steps foot out of her chambers.

That first night set a precedent for those that follow. The children understand as much as they can about what their mother has suffered but not a night goes by without one of them slipping in her chambers and curling up in bed with her.

Most often it is Arya or Rickon but on occasion Sansa is found in there, even Bran manages to get into her rooms. Ned suspects Robb helps him but as it is not hurting anyone he doesn't question it or stop it. 

Catelyn's chambers are constantly guarded by one of the wolves, it seems Nymeria's protection of her mistresses mother has passed on to Summer, Shaggydog and Grey Wind.

The moons pass but time has taken on a strange quality for Catelyn, an entire week will go by and it will only feel like a day. Days and nights merge together until one day she rises, dresses and goes to the great hall to break her fast with the family.

She doesn't engage with anyone bar Ned and the children but it seems to be the beginning of some version of finding a new semblance of normality.

There are days where she hides in her chambers, but there are also days when life feels as though nothing has changed. As though King Robert never came to Winterfell and life went on as it was supposed to, Ned knows it is not to last as the babe comes closer.

He has attempted to broach the subject of the babe with her but Catelyn refuses to speak of it. He asks Maester Luwin to quietly locate a wet nurse and see if he can find a family to take the babe in.

Ned was willing for the child to be raised in Winterfell but only if that is what Catelyn wants. He will not force her to face this child every day, unfortunately by the time Catelyn goes to the birthing bed neither have been found.

He stays with her throughout the birth and is un-surprised when she turns away from the tiny girl and refuses to have anything to do with it.

Two days pass with the keep on tenterhooks as Catelyn retreats back behind the stony wall of silence, her chambers barred from the inside more often than not.

Then either late at night or early in the morn, she's not entirely sure which is it, like a ghost she slips through the door and out of her chambers, hearing the babe’s cries echo throughout the keep driving her from their warmth and comfort.

At first she wanders aimlessly, not paying attention to her path until Cat finds herself standing outside the door to the room where the babe is. She has tried to ignore its existence since that moment in the mountains when she realised she was with child but she can't anymore.

It was easier before the babe was born, even in the darkest night when it was moving restlessly inside her she could pretend it wasn't actually there. Now though with her stomach flat and her breasts so painfully full and heavy with milk, and that plaintive lost cry that makes her stomach lurch every time she hears it. She had never been able to bear her children crying when she could do something to stop it.

They think she doesn't know that a wet nurse has not yet been found and they are still looking for a family to raise the babe. The Maester and maids doing their best to care for the child but it needs a mother. Perhaps that is what drives her from her bed more than anything, the child needn't be left hungry and alone, not when she can do something about it.

She slips into the room, empty except for the babe crying from a cradle by the fire. She leans up against the closed door and eyes the room warily, it has been two days since the birth but she has refused to lay eyes on the babe, fearing that she will only be able to see the monsters of her nightmares looking back up at her.

Perhaps sensing it's mother’s presence the crying takes on a more desperate note and with a deep shuddering breath Catelyn steps towards the cradle. From this distance she can't see much, but the tuft of bright Tully hair she glimpses buoys her to take another step forward. Before she can stop to think she is standing staring down at her youngest daughter, for the first time acknowledging that the child is hers. 

Reaching a shaking hand down she strokes the babes cheek lightly, it's cries  
dropping to a light mewling at the gentle touch. Standing over the cradle Catelyn can see her own face reflected back at her, just like Sansa, from the hair to the nose and shape of the cheeks. The only difference being instead of bright blue eyes peering through long pale lashes her eyes are a murky sea green.

Her daughter... 

Her breath catches as this poor, helpless, nameless babe stares up at her.

Fleetingly she wonders if this is how Ned felt the first time he laid eyes on Jon Snow.

Then the tiny face screws up as she starts to cry again.

Without stopping to think about her actions and what they might mean Catelyn reaches down and scoops the babe up. With steady and practiced hands she makes sure she is clean and dry. Instinctually the babe starts to root and nuzzle at her breast seeking nourishment; automatically Catelyn opens her robe and allows her to suckle.

Soon the babe is full and sleeping and without considering what it will mean she goes back to her own chambers the babe content in her mother’s arms.

She doesn't realise the panic she causes when a maid arrives not long later and finds the child missing. Doesn't hear the yelling and pounding feet as Ned is woken and he along with Roderick and the guards start to search the Keep. She is sound asleep curled protectively around her daughter when Ned thinks to check on her. When she next wakes the sky is starting to lighten, the cradle has appeared next to her bed and Ned is dozing in a chair by the window.

While there are some whispers behind closed doors no one questions Lady Starks sudden acceptance of the child.

Ned doesn't ask about her sudden change of heart, merely accepts her choice.

To no ones surprise Lesia is doted on by her older siblings.

Catelyn watches from the covered bridge as Arya carries her younger sister into the practice yard and proceeds to explain in great detail to the 9 month old the finer points of sword fighting. Her mind goes to another grey-eyed child who loved his baby sister and toted her everywhere he could.

Does her love of Lesia make her a hypocrite, if she is so willing to raise one bastard babe why did she shun Jon Snow for so many years? 

It is not an easy question, nor is the answer quick to reveal itself.

That night as she nurses Lesia her mind is still plagued by the question. 

 

_Jon,_

_Much has occurred since you left Winterfell for the Wall and I have no doubt that you have been informed of the recent happenings._

_Had they not occurred I would not have made effort to hear news of you, nor would I have honestly cared. Some of what I have to say will come of no surprise to you but it still needs to be said._

_As you are no doubt aware I hated your presence, what it meant for this marriage so new and so foreign that my husband was willing to raise another woman’s child with ours. Mayhap I was punishing you for the anger I had at my husband and this woman whom he loved so fiercely. Then one day without my realising it my anger had become a habit, despite knowing my husband had grown to love me I couldn't let go of my anger at your existence, which I was forced to face every day. I would have forgiven Ned for any bastard he fathered but I couldn't forgive him for bringing you into our home._

_Now I sit here the mother of a babe that is not my husbands and I begin to understand why he insisted on keeping you in Winterfell. That you can love a child while bearing nothing but hatred for its parents. I know not whether your father loved your mother, I have not asked him of her in many years, should he wish to tell me of her then he will._

_I am not going to apologise for the way I felt, to do so would be a lie and you deserve better than that._

_I do not seek forgiveness or absolution for I don't believe that I require any, nor do I truly understand what has prompted me to write you. I do know that I love all of my children even the 'Snow'. There is no love between us, I do not expect that to change, but perhaps there is now understanding._

_Your father in all his wisdom and love for all of us has never quite understood where both you and I were coming from. You craved a place to belong, where you were defined by the man you were brought up to be and not by a name. I was raised with the words "Family, duty, honour'. You were not my family, I had no duty to you and you were a dishonour to my husband and I treated you as such._

_In saying that you are family to my husband and children, it was my husbands duty to see you raised as a good man as his honour demanded it, I can accept that and have made my peace with it. You are fiercely loved by your brothers and sisters and I have no doubt that Lesia will be raised hearing stories of her big brother Jon, for none of the other children care how the two of you came to be. You are their brother and she is their sister._

_Do with my words what you will and know that as long as there is a Stark in Winterfell you will always find welcome here._

_Catelyn Stark_


End file.
